Study Guide 2017
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SHAKESPEARE IN THE SCHOOLS presents WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S TWELFTH NIGHT STUDY GUIDE 2017 Sidney E. Frank Foundation Montana Shakespeare in the Schools Montana Shakespeare in the Schools’ is an educational outreach program of production/program is part of Montana State University-Bozeman Shakespeare in American Communities, FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE GO TO: a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. www.shakespeareintheparks.org TABLETABLE OF OF CONTENTS CONTENTS Table of Contents ............................................................................2 Welcome Letter (from Kevin) ...................................................................3 Director’s Notes .............................................................................4 About the Play ...............................................................................5 Characters ................................................................................6 Synopsis .................................................................................7 Seeing the Play: Before and After ...............................................................8 What You Will, or What Will You... By Gretchen Minton, Ph.D. ........................................9 Themes and Questions to Explore Love...Is complicated. 11 Identity, Disguise and Stereotypes ...........................................................12 Righting Perceived Wrongs. 14 How SIS Meets Montana’s Common Core .......................................................15 William Shakespeare .......................................................................16 Theater Etiquitte ...........................................................................17 Additional Resources .......................................................................18 TEACHERS: PLAY WITH US AND WE’LL NOT FAIL YOU! Thank you to all teachers! You are an integral part of our success. When you partici- pate as an audience member and as a workshop participant, you help us make the very most of our visit! Last year, during the workshops, actor-teachers found that some teachers jumped in to every activity while others participated in the warm-up games and then chose to float around the room and offer suggestions. Either way, teacher participation made a difference. According to one actor-teacher, once teachers “committed fully... the students really were enthusiastic about [them] being a part of the workshop!” In this guide, we have included contextual information and discussion ideas connected to the workshops and the production. You can review these materials before and after our visit to complement and expand your students' experience with our play. Thanks also for providing feedback during and after our visit and letting us know what you think! 2 WELCOME We are so thrilled to be bringing the words of William Shakespeare to life for you and your students! There is no better way to access Shakespeare’s language and stories than through live performance; plays are, after all, meant to be seen and experienced rather than read off a page. Our goal with the Shakespeare in the Schools program is to engage, inspire, and excited audiences in a variety of ways: through carefully curated workshops, contextual information and activities in the this guide, and—most importantly—through the magic of live performance. Each year we investigate new ways of engaging our young audiences with relevant material. How can we reach our young ears, and minds? In what ways can we identify mutual connections between students’ worlds and the world of Shakespeare? It is important for us to respect the lives of our students by NOT producing Shakespeare as a “museum piece,” but rather as a living mirror through which elements of their lives can be dramatized through Shakespeare’s characters, relationships, and language. I believe that not only is Twelfth Night a relatable piece for young ears, but that our director Marti Lyons has a brilliant mind— adept in the realm of revealing the parallel themes between these fascinating characters and our students. At MSIP, we pride ourselves on bringing Shakespeare to life through the highest caliber of production. We aim to serve you and your students with a most unique, professional experience so that you can all remain inspired in the same way we are. As always, it is a most honorable pleasure to serve you and your community. Enjoy! Kevin Asselin Executive Artistic Director Montana Shakespeare in the Parks Maria, Sir Andrew, and Sir Toby in Shakespeare in the Parks’ 2012 production of Twelfth Night, directed by William Brown 3 DIRECTOR’S NOTE I love this play. I love this play with a true, perhaps at times irrational, and unwavering love—like Viola’s love for Orsino. I love this play because it is a comedy, but a comedy that bursts forth from a deep sadness. The play begins in Illyria with many griev- ing characters; Olivia and her household are mourning the death of her brother and Orsino is lovesick over Olivia. In the midst of this grieving two strangers (both also grieving) wash ashore onto this beautiful island, and then—everything begins to grow. In this world, like in our world, love and joy can grow in the midst of sorrow and longing. It’s in the plot but also in the language: we hear about Olivia’s salt water tears and they are likened to the salt water brine of the sea. Victor Hugo once wrote “those who do not cry, do not see.” In this play both the tears and the sea wash over characters—at times drowning them, and Director Marti Lyons at times washing away debris so that the characters can see more clearly. It is with this sight that they are able to pursue their desires and become more fully who they are. I love that in this play nature (the storm and the salt water) sets the stage for the journey each character will take towards discovering his/her/their true nature (their internal life and longings). Nature brings forth nature—what a beautiful conceit. I also love this theme of one’s true nature. When we begin this play we think we may understand someone like Viola or Malvolio, but as the action unfolds we learn about a true or hidden part of everyone. Underneath the guise of each character’s presentation we may learn of forbidden love, an unwavering selfishness, a profound loyalty, or a deep cruelty. The play invites us to interpret and reinterpret these characters as their true desires and motivations are revealed. It asks us to look closer than our first assumptions of who we think they are. One of my favorite devices in this play is that often a character’s true nature is revealed while he/she/they are disguised. In this play; it is only in hiding that one finds oneself. Whether it’s Viola dressing up as Ce- sario to survive, Olivia veiling herself to keep her identity a mystery, or Malvolio dressing up in his yellow stockings to pursue his Lady; in disguising their appearances all of these characters reveal something essential about themselves. There are many other themes and ideas resonate in this work and explored in this production. These are a few that fascinate me but as with all of Shakespeare’s work the interpretations are vast, deep, and varied. We hope you enjoy the themes and ideas presented here as well as your own interpretations and discoveries. Remember—the title of this play Twelfth Night: Or What You Will is profoundly personal. It puts you, yes YOU, in the title. It asks YOU, all of us, to examine not just the inner lives of the characters, but also the inner lives of ourselves. We hope you enjoy this exploration as much as we do and for the rest, what you will. Tyler Rich as Sir Andrew, MSIP 2012 4 ABOUT THE PLAY Twelfth Night, or What You Will is a particular- ly exciting comedy that comes later in Shake- speare’s life. As a comedy, the play presents a story that reflects a positive, optimistic and hopeful attitude toward life. At this point in his career, though Shakespeare was also acutely aware of the tragedies that occur in life. He was a well-seasoned playwright looking to write come- dies that touched on the darker sides of the human condition. After Twelfth Night, Shakespeare would go on to embrace this more fully writing what some call his “problem plays” (i.e. The Winter’s Tale, Measure for Measure). Twelfth Night, or What You Will takes place in Illyria, which can be found on a map as the Balkan Penin- sula, located in Southeastern Europe, across the sea from Italy’s famous “boot.” However, Shakespeare fictionalized his Illyria to be somewhat placeless. From the play, Shakespeare tells us that his Illyria is near the sea, as Viola and Sebastian end up there after a shipwreck. Other than that, Shakespeare used his imagination to fill in the details. Shakespeare also isn’t that specific about what days of the year his play occurs on. Between the beginning of the play and the end, Shakespeare tells us that from three months have passed. But there are no other direct allusions to any dates. The title, Twelfth Night, perhaps refers to the twelfth day after Christmas. However, the only sig- nifiers in the play that the characters are at the end of celebrating this twelve-day festival is Sir Toby and Sir Andrew’s making of revelry. It is possible Shakespeare may have been juxtaposing Olivia’s mourning with a festival full of revelry. Or not… The title page of Twelfth Night from the 1623 First Folio because the other part of the title is What You Will. The Oxford Playhouse is a beautiful place to see Twelfth Night. 5 ABOUT THE